Education Atlas

How Knowledge Is Built
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme
Learning Theory and Concepts

Block Scheduling

Instructional Design and Curriculum Frameworks

Block scheduling, or blocking, is a way of organizing the school day used in some American K-12 schools, in which students attend fewer but longer classes each day than under a traditional period-based schedule. It is more common in middle and high schools than in elementary schools. In one common form a single class meets every day for a stretch of days before another class takes its place; in another form, the classes a student attends rotate through a repeating daily cycle. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Core Claim
Under block scheduling a school day is organized into fewer, longer class periods rather than many short ones, changing how much time each subject receives on a given day. 1
Classification
Education Level
Upper Secondary Education (ISCED 3) 1
FAQs

Does research show that block scheduling improves academic achievement?

The evidence is not conclusive.

Not conclusively. A systematic review by the EPPI-Centre at the University of London asked what effect block scheduling has on academic achievement. It concluded that there is not conclusive evidence in the review to support introducing policy guidance on the use of block scheduling in secondary schools. In plain terms, the evidence did not settle the question either way.
Connections

Long-Form Articles

Sources
1. Block scheduling (Wikipedia)
  • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Block_scheduling, lead paragraph (Wikipedia REST summary extract)
    Block scheduling or blocking is a type of academic scheduling used in some schools in the American K-12 system, in which students have fewer but longer classes per day than in a traditional academic schedule.
  • Description, education-level classification
    It is more common in middle and high schools than in elementary schools.
View the Source
What is the effect of block scheduling on academic achievement? A systematic review (EPPI-Centre)
Review findings
Quote, Review findings
There is not conclusive evidence in this review to support the introduction of policy guidance on the use of block scheduling in secondary schools.
View the Source
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.